DEGREES UNEDITED

Richard Taylor talks to Kim Walker, MFA student at School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Transatlantic diversity: how overseas study opens one’s ears to new ideas

"Consider audio from two pieces competing with one another and one becoming the dominant sound within a space." (Kim Walker, December 2009)

In this case sound is mirrored by architectural surroundings, reflecting dichotomies between one city and the next: but can two sides to one idea coalesce to make one practice? Read on and find out how Kim develops her practice in relation to 'alien' surroundings...
Read and comment on Kim's blog »

The story so far: Kim introduces herself through her own words

I attended Saturday morning art class at Glasgow School of Art as a child: then went on to study at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, University of Dundee, within the Time Based Art program in the School of Media Arts and Imaging, specializing in sound and video. 

Graduating in 2006, I returned to Glasgow and changed jobs every year for the next three years. I didn't feel confident enough to consider postgraduate study at this time so I concentrated on renting a studio and making a new body of work. I applied to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago because they offer an MFA in Studio degree with Sound as a specialism. I knew that my application was a bit of a dream as I thought I had no chance. I had no idea how I was going to meet the tuition fees if my application was successful. 

In Spring 2009 I was awarded the School of the Art Institute of Chicago Trustee's Merit Scholarship and so over the summer my dream became a reality. 

My current practice is predominantly realised through sound, moving image and installation. I have one ongoing research project that is feeding my current practice. My sound and video work explores play within competitive environments such as team games and how this experience affects our behaviour and communication.

Between NTSC and PAL, the editor in Glasgow talks to the artist in Chigaco

Richard Taylor: So you seem to rely on subjectivity and perspective of individuals in your work, especially as far as sound amplifies and conflicts within an environment. How is your relationship to place signified within this? For instance being in Glasgow and then Chicago, does your current / changing environment amplify your perspective? And how does the virtual blogosphere, act as a middle ground...

Kim Walker: In terms of an individual relationship to a place, my practice, especially the audio element, is beginning to touch upon this idea. In order for me to gain a sense of place, and then to build a personal relationship with an environment, I tend to isolate individual sound elements through location recording. Usually a piece with a greater identity comprising of many different sounds is the result. I think being in Chicago I have become more self-aware and self-conscious as I do feel that I am a bit of a stranger here. I do notice a lot of new sounds within the cityscape I've never heard before, such as commuting into the city-center on the train. I am very conscious of the different words that are used, the dialects present here and those present in Glasgow and Scotland. Considering a blog, there has been so much fresh input within my practice that I've been utilising the blog as just a release of sorts. Another space where I can organise what I've discussed, seen or heard and reflect upon my work.

RT: It is odd how your preferences in word seem to be set to US English, not UK: this is a very subtle take on language, but other everyday permutations in your experience seem just as integral to your work. How do you make the best of the devices and technicalities that you have to hand... are the facilities in Chicago on par with your ideas?

KM: Written text is an element of my practice that I use when I am reflecting on my work as a whole or looking at a piece I have been working with for some time. I would agree that personal experience within actions as well as within speech are very important to me. 

The first statement did come to mind when I began writing this, and it is something that I do find I have to be conscious of, especially as I am studying at an American art school. It also touches on your last question as the computers I have access to are all in the US format. All of the programs are set to US standards for written text and I have had trouble trying to change any documents to UK English. The same is said for my video work as the screening format for the US is NTSC and the UK format is PAL. This initially presented a problem, as I had to re-think the method I use to store and archive my files. I decided to always export a PAL version for screening in the UK as well as a NTSC copy and this seems to be working well for me. This is an ongoing learning process, as issues with the format of text and video will continue to emerge as I think about my return to Scotland and how to master my material for the United Kingdom. I would say that facilities are on par although as an international graduate student, there could be some more information about working within US standards, especially for written academic work and with video standards.

RT: So do you find that these problems and restrictions have an effect on your work conceptually? It seems to be a paradoxical situation that could work to your advantage do you agree, in terms of international space and ideas around communication, written and in audio form: would this also govern how you might consider presenting your work? And how would different versions ascribe to the different architectures of Chicago and Glasgow?

KM: At the moment the problems I've been encountering have not had a negative effect on my practice or how my work develops conceptually. Over my first semester back in art school, I have been working on three pieces and have been discussing these in depth with my two tutors. Having these challenges and issues to consider had definitely worked in a positive way, as they have now become very natural things to consider when thinking about my work in depth. 

The problems I've found with formatting have enabled me to view the presentation of my new work, and my older body of work, again with fresh eyes and ideas. I used projection for the first time in an exhibition here in Chicago in November and this helped me to contrast screening video on a TV monitor or as a projection. I haven't included a written text with a sound or video piece before but this could be something to consider for future. 

I'm not sure if I would create different versions of a piece for screening in the UK or the USA, it might be more about the kind of exhibition I would have the opportunity to be involved in. When comparing the two locations, it seems that in Glasgow there are many more artists-run spaces and support for young, emerging artists, in terms of exhibiting, professional development and with collaborative practice and exhibition. It is also easier for visitors to view art and creative practice in the UK as many galleries are free. In the states many of the galleries I've been to, I have had to pay, sometimes quite high admission charges. A lot of the non-profits expect you to donate so it seems like there is less funding available. The access to viewing art in the major galleries here in Chicago and the US is a negative factor that I've experienced so far. I think that this is not as large a problem in the UK and Scotland. In Glasgow I enjoy the grass-roots initiatives, as there is so much energy and enthusiasm there.

RT: It is interesting how aspects of funding and different ways of running things can and will effect how artists make and present art. Glasgow is indeed a vibrant environment, but it also seems very much tied to the Art School, is this the same in Chigaco or do you think artists from outside have as much chance at penetrating opportunities?

Also it could be said that the public funding that does raise profiles and facilitates galleries and collectives in the UK, is just as much restricting as often there are requirements and prescribed ways of doing things. Would you agree that you and your work are in a very interesting position in having this dual perspective to both working environments?

KM: At the moment I do have quite limited experience of researching the opportunities within Chicago. As a student again, much of my time is spent within the art school. From the shows I've been to I feel there are ties to the art schools in the city, however maybe they are not as strong as those in Glasgow. The city is so much larger and there may very well be more opportunity for an outside artist to relocate and engage with the opportunities there. It seems that the art community is not as intimate as that in Glasgow but I think I feel this due to the size difference of the two cities and my adjustment to the Chicago and it's environments. The scale of the city and funding differences could create even tighter communities that support each other that I haven't discovered yet as they perhaps do not rely so heaving on public funding.

I do agree that I am in an interesting position here. As I become used to the art community in Chicago, I feel that I will be better able to see positives within both communities, if and how to approach them differently. I'm sure my view of Glasgow will develop and change over the time spent in the U.S. Even though the communities are supported by different systems, there are similarities. There is a very positive, can-do attitude in Chicago and I feel that this will be something influential to me and that I can keep with me.

RT: So from moving from one place to the other, yet momentarily existing in Chicago, do you feel you could start using your blog as a reference point, to which you can then ground yourself? How do you see it as an archive of 'self' that mediates between the U.S and the U.K?

KM: Yes, very much so. Over the period in Chicago, I hope that my blog will develop into a body of images, sound, video and writings that specifically reference my time spent in the US. I feel that the concerns I've discussed can be recorded within the blog and I can then revisit this material to help me problem solve at any point. I feel it will very much become an archive of 'self', as how I perceive myself, my hometown and my country has already been challenged and will continue to be challenged in the future. It will be exciting to see this develop and to see how I view the blog as a document of my practice and identity. It is a very interesting thought to view the blog as a changing record of my temporary existence within a specific environment and my thoughts, feelings and concerns during this time. I think that over time, the blog will reference and reflect upon both Glasgow and Chicago, and the UK and United States, especially when considering personal experience within the cities.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Are you considering further study abroad and have you thought about the changing affects an environment can have? As Kim finds her practice through the differences in culture, regional formats and discrepancies in language - she revels in how such things suit her art specialism: would this frustrate or begin to define your practice?

Want to start a debate of your own? Get in touch and get profiled: let's have our own mini-discussion, exposing your ways of practice, making the Degrees unedited experience more qualified and relevant.

Start your own run of posts making the community more discursive: tackling hurdles, getting advice and giving support in context of studentship. When else will you have access to such people who are facing the same adventure? You may find yourself on the same path.

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First published: a-n.co.uk January 2010